Monday 31 October 2016

One Mini Every Week #43 - Halloween Special

Since it's Halloween, I thought I'd do something a little different for this week's project, and so I've had a go at making some creepy looking scenery (so this blog post also doubles as one of my quick & easy terrain tutorials as well)...


To create the naked/dead trees I've made a base out of two pieces of vinyl floor tile (that have been stuck together - for a bit of added strength), and BBQ skewers and cocktail sticks that have been bent/broken into branch-like shapes (being careful not to snap them entirely in two).


The various pieces have then been superglued together into a treelike shape (and each of the bends/breaks has also been strengthened by adding a spot of superglue).


A hot glue gun is then carefully  dragged up and down the branches and trunk to give it a bit of texture (pulling out from the trunk's base to create the roots).


Each tree is then painted (I've done 1 base coat, and 2 drybrush layers) and based with sand, flock, or static grass (as is your preference) ...and that's pretty much all there is to it!




* * *
 
As well as the trees, I've also made a few small standing stones (perhaps as the kind of thing that you would expect to see atop an old barrow) that can be used individually...



...or placed on top of one another to make a more substantial piece.


These were made in much the same fashion as my previous 'runestones' (see THIS page) ...i.e. by grabbing a few pieces of gravel from the garden path, and giving them a simple paint job. And despite only taking a few minutes to make, I think they look rather nice :)

-the whole set-

And that's it for this week's project. Next time I should be back to painting actual miniatures again :)

Tuesday 25 October 2016

One Mini Every Week #42

Seeing as how the new 5E 'Adventures in Middle Earth' book (by Cubical 7) will be released soon (and I'll probably be picking it up from my FLGS as soon as it does), I've dug deep into my stockpile of unpainted miniatures for this week's painting project...


...and I'm pretty pleased with how the little guy has turned out :)

When I purchased this miniature (which was a looooong time ago), I'm pretty sure it was part of Black Tree Design's (defunct) Lord of the Rings line.

However, after a bit of digging I've discovered that the same mini's can now be had from 'Scotia Grendel' (should anyone be interested in picking one up for themselves) - with this particular figure being sold as part of THIS set of three halflings.

But yeah, it's a nice little miniature, and was fun to paint ...and to better illustrate just how little this guy is, here he is pictured next to one of my human adventurers (from Midlam Miniatures):

Monday 24 October 2016

Another 'Dungeon Designer' Map for October (patreon funded)

As I'm fond of mentioning, over on my Patreon page I have one very generous patron that has pledged at the 'dungeon designer' level - but rather than sending me a sketch or idea to work from, they have simply asked that I 'freestyle' another map (each month) however I see fit.

So, for a bit of a change, for this next map I thought I would do something in the same style as my most recent 'little book of dungeons' booklet...


...so here's hoping you guys like it!

I also thought that I'd take this opportunity to show how I sometimes utilise small maps like this in conjunction with 10mm miniatures (or coloured beads) when I'm GM'ing away from home - i.e. when I don't want to be carrying too much around (as there's only so much stuff you can cram into one small backpack), but still want to use something for tactical movement or similar.


For the 'battlemats' I'm using a bunch of THESE magnetic whiteboards (and can easily fit several into my bag, along with my books etc.). They are roughly A4 in size ...and if you trim a sheet of paper (onto which you've printed out a map or similar) so that it is just a little larger than the black frame, you can slide the paper under the frame to keep it in place.


For miniatures/tokens I use either coloured plastic beads (with a tiny magnet glued to the bottom of each) or use 10mm miniatures (from places like Pendraken, Kallistra, or Magister Militum) that I've mounted on small washers, glued magnets underneath, and filled in with a bit of greenstuff...


...all of which I keep/transport in a small case from KR Multicase (which is also about the same size as a sheet of paper, and about 2" deep).


However, with the maps/mini's being so small, these 'battle-boards' do sometimes need to be passed around (or slid across) the table on occasion - but since everything is magnetised, it's not usually a problem :)


(note that both a labelled and unlabelled version of the above 'sewer' map can be dowloaded from the Patreon page ...and that you can do so even if you're not a patron)

Sunday 16 October 2016

One Mini Every Week #39 to #41

Although I've fallen behind with my posts, I'm still attempting to paint one miniature every week (or at least do something 'miniatures' related) ...so it's time for a bit of catching up.

Week 39

During week 39 I had some new paints on order (as my old ones were running out and/or clumping up) - so while I was waiting for them to be delivered, I spent some time making a whole bunch of grass tufts for future use.



These were made with the static grass applicator that I mentioned in a PREVIOUS POST ...and should last me quite some time. I'd also say that just by making this one batch, the 'applicator' has probably already paid for itself :)

Week 40 & 41

Once my paints had arrived I was back to work on some more PC/NPC type miniatures...


...and these two are more 'adventuring folk' from Midlam Miniatures (THIS guy and THIS guy). And, as I've said before, they're nice miniatures considering they only cost £2 each!




Sunday 9 October 2016

Dungeon Designer - October 2016

Here's the first of the 'dungeon designer*' maps for October ...another little transitional piece (where one wall of a large room has started to collapse - revealing a cave-like passage beyond):


*an option that allows folks to suggest geomorphs designs for me to draw over on Patreon.
 

Friday 7 October 2016

Mine Geomorphs #18 & #19 (patreon funded)

Thanks to my supporters over on Patreon, here's a couple more geomorphs that can act as transitions between my 'mines' and 'caves' maps.




Monday 3 October 2016

Into the Darkness : Map 3 (prison)

I'm pleased to announce the release of the next map for the 'Into the Darkness' range...


Into the Darkness : Map 3 features a full colour map that depicts a dungeon/prison area that should be suitable for use with most fantasy/medieval games and settings.

In this product you get...

A pdf booklet featuring a labelled version of the map (for the GM's notes).


An unlabelled jpg image of the map (for use with virtual tabletops).

 
A miniatures scaled battlemap (i.e. printable at 1" per grid square).

* * *

Into the Darkness : Map 3 is available for just $1.50 via RPGNow & DriveThruRPG.



Saturday 1 October 2016

Dungeon Monthly #46 (October 2016)

It's the start of a new month - so that must mean that it's time for a new map...


Note: you can find unlabelled versions of all the 'dungeon monthly' maps in the following albums: